Looking for survivors of stomach cancer

LSchlotty

dustmagnet7 said:

The fun I had with cancer
When I was diagnosed last febuary, my cancer was stage 4. It had taken my entire stomach and spread to my small intestines and there were several hundred small masses in my omentum (thats the fatty stuff that holds your insides together). The tumor was so advanced in my stomach that it caused fissures in my outer stomach wall and internal bleeding. Severe anemia is what got me in to the hospital initially, then after 5 pints of blood, they scoped/biopsied my stomach and found the cancer. Because of the bleeding, I went through surgery first. They removed my entire stomach, two thirds of my small intestines, a small section of large intestine and a lot of the omentum. After surgery, they gave me about 3 weeks to heal up, then I went straight into 21 weeks of the most brutal chemo my oncologist thought I could survive. I'm 36 years old, so they figured they could give me a VERY tough course...and it was. I went through 7 cycles (three weeks each) of cisplatin, taxotere and 5-FU. It was initially going to be 8 rounds, but my side effects became too severe (mostly weight loss and neuropathy) and the treatments were working. Over the course of chemo, I lost about 70 pounds (I started at 185lbs) and the side effects were terrible. Towards the end I felt as though I knew how victims of torture felt...21 weeks of scheduled poisoning sucks. Anyhow, I survived the treatments and have had 2 clear scans and am cancer free. Now, I'm in the process of re-building my body. Trying to put weight back on, which is very difficult with no stomach. Over the course of all this, I've learned tons of tricks for survival and would be more than happy to share if you have any specific questions. I will say, that if it weren't for the unbelievable support and strength of my wife and daughter (and all our friends and family), I never would have done as well as I did. Not to mention my willingness to do whatever it takes to survive. Besides the conventional treatments, we tried everything from diet suppliments to some foul tasting brew made by a Chippewa Medicine Man in Canada. Please, feel free to ask questions...I'll try to answer as best as I can. Keep fighting and when you think you've gone as far as you can...push a little farther. Best wishes to you and your husband.

What do you eat?

They foundation small tumor in the GE Junction, gave me for Round of 5FU and then I had a total gastrectomy four weeks ago and resection where they brought my small intestine up and attached it to the bottom of my esophagus. My surgeon said I could start eating whatever I want now but almost everything causes nausea.  I know sugar is bad and avoid it. Even a small 2oz portion of baked salmon caused nausea  today.  Just wonder if you experienced this and how you overcome it?

 thank you?

Laura